Oil Ministers

FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT OIL MINISTERS - PAGE 3

Saudi Arabia's oil minister said current global oil prices are "perfect," as several key OPEC members indicated the group was unlikely to change output levels when it meets later this month. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which supplies roughly 35 per cent of the world's crude, has held its quotas unchanged since last year's record 4.2 million barrels per day in cuts. "The price is perfect," Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi, whose country is OPEC's most influential member, told reporters.

NEW DELHI: Cairn India managing director Rahul Dhir on Tuesday met Oil Minister S Jaipal Reddy , immediately after expiry of the January deadline set by the Prime Minister's Office for the ministry to decide fate of the $9.6 billion Cairn-Vedanta deal . "We have not discussed anything about the deal, it was just a curtsey call," Dhir told ET while coming out of the ministry. The oil ministry officials said that the ministry has not yet firmed up its mind on the deal and it will take time.

NEW DELHI: Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora on Friday called upon the section of retail outlet dealers not to stop operations of their retail outlets in view of the strike call given by the Federation of All India Petroleum Traders (FAIPT). Deora at a meeting held here on Friday with a delegation of dealers led by Member of Parliament JD Seelam and FAIPT President Ashok Badhwar emphasized that the dealer should exercise restraint from putting consumers to any kind of inconvenience as that goes against the very basis of their existence for the cause of rendering services to the consumers.

NEW DELHI: Ram Naik has become India's longest serving minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, a period that witnessed liquidation of the waiting list of over 1.2 crore LPG connections and new strides in oil and gas exploration. Naik, who made it to the Lok Sabha for the record fifth consecutive term from the North Mumbai constituency, surpassed last week Congressman Satish Sharma's longest stint of 39 months and 29 days as minister of state for petroleum and natural gas (with independent charge)

NEW DELHI: Ram Naik has become India's longest serving minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, a period that witnessed liquidation of the waiting list of over 1.2 crore LPG connections and new strides in oil and gas exploration. Naik, who made it to the Lok Sabha for the record fifth consecutive term from the North Mumbai constituency, surpassed last week Congressman Satish Sharma's longest stint of 39 months and 29 days as minister of state for petroleum and natural gas (with independent charge)

NEW DELHI: The Congress party, which blamed the inflation for its dramatic loss in four assembly elections, is putting pressure on the government to stop raising diesel prices every month, but Oil Minister Veerappa Moily said the price reform would continue as the country has to pay for imports. Diesel prices have risen about 50 paise a month since January, adding up to a hike of Rs 6 per litre in the course of this year, leading to political pressure against the move, particularly after the Congress party was routed in four crucial assembly elections.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to undertake a minor expansion of his Union Cabinet soon. According to government circles, a handful of ministers may be sworn in, possibly before the budget presentation in Parliament. Among those who could make it as ministers are Satish Sharma and Mohsina Kidwai. Party circles asserted R K Dhawan too will be a strong contender for a cabinet berth. All three have made it to the Rajya Sabha recently. From all indications, Captain Satish Sharma is believed to be the front-runner for the petroleum ministry, currently held by Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar as additional charge.

NEW DELHI: Oil Minister Murli Deora was due to begin a visit to Myanmar on Sunday, a government spokesman said, amid escalating protests led by monks against the ruling military junta. ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), would sign contracts for gas exploration in three offshore blocks in Myanmar during the visit by Deora, the spokesman said. Deora's visit comes a fortnight after the United States and Indonesia called on China and India to use their clout to press Myanmar's military junta to improve its human rights record.

KUWAIT: Omani oil minister Mohammad bin Hamad al-Rumhy sharply criticised OPEC's production policy today, saying it was creating volatility in the market without benefiting oil producers and that his country was suffering. His comments, delivered at an energy industry conference in Kuwait that was also attended by the oil ministers of OPEC members Kuwait and Iraq, were Oman's first direct, public criticism of the group since oil prices plunged last year. Oman is a small non-OPEC oil exporter which lacks the huge financial reserves that its Gulf neighbours can use to ride out low energy prices.

NEW DELHI: India will sign six agreements with Korea and another with Turkey for enhancing cooperation in the hydrocarbons sector during the roundtable meeting of North and Central Asian oil producers with major Asian oil consumers. The roundtable, to be held here on November 25 as part of efforts to enhance energy dialogue among leading producers and consumers in the continent, follows the meeting in January this year where major Asian consumers met their counterparts from southeast and west Asian oil producers.